Top officials within the Danish Ministry for Climate, Energy and Utilities, including permanent secretary Lars Frelle-Petersen, are under scrutiny for allegedly concealing the extent of significant delays in the expansion of Denmark’s electricity grid. This has prompted legal experts to question whether Minister Lars Aagaard misled Parliament and potentially broke the law, according to reports.

The controversy stems from internal meeting minutes and memos obtained by the media, revealing that the ministry allegedly withheld information requested by several parties in the Danish Parliament (“Folketinget”). A new report indicates that 141 out of 199 electricity projects by Energinet are now, on average, 29 months behind schedule.

This situation has drawn strong reactions, with some suggesting it could warrant a reprimand or even the minister’s resignation. Aagaard is scheduled to face a parliamentary committee again to address the matter, which nearly cost him his position earlier this year. He narrowly avoided being ousted due to a parliamentary majority, including support from North Atlantic mandates.

The delays in Energinet’s projects are raising concerns about their potential impact on the production of new green electricity and the electrification efforts aimed at creating necessary demand. The report, covering developments from the first to the second quarter of this year, shows that while the number of delayed projects has remained constant, the 141 affected projects have slipped an additional three months on average.

The ministry maintains that it has been continuously informed about the overall delays. Aagaard claims he was not informed about the information at the time and that it was assessed that the ministry was not obligated to share the information with Parliament.

Critics, such as Leila Stockmarr, climate spokesperson for the Red-Green Alliance, find it hard to believe that the permanent secretary did not share this knowledge with the minister. Stockmarr insists that Aagaard must now present all relevant documents and correspondence.